Sisal vs Cardboard vs Carpet Scratching Posts for Cats

Have you ever found a texture you really like to just run a hand along? Maybe something like velvet, or corduroy, or that bumpy texture of a particular kind of wall surface, or just something smooth like silk. You just enjoy the feeling of it running under your hands, and find yourself idly stroking it when you can.

I thought of this when I read this story sent in by a customer.

"My cats like playing with cardboard houses and scratching pads, but they LOVE carpet. A little too much. So much so that I can't actually live in a carpeted apartment or house, because they'll destroy the floors.

I think it's something about how the carpet gets stuck in their paws, and they like how it feels. Cardboard works too, but it's not as soft, and their claws don't tug on it the same way, so it's not quite as pleasurable."

Every time I'm at the pet supply store looking down the aisle at all of the scratching posts, scratch pads, sisal-wrapped pillars, and assorted toys, I think about this story. It's just such an iconic example of how our feline friends have preferences, and how those preferences might go against common wisdom.

So, today, I want to talk about the different materials you often see for cat scratchers, and why you might consider each of them.

Why Cats Need to Scratch

First of all, some of you might be thinking, " Why not train the cat not to scratch? Or declaw them? Both of these are bad ideas.

First, declawing. What most people don't realize is that declawing is a surgery that essentially cuts off the fingertips of each hand. Yeah, the claws are gone, but how would you like having fingers cropped at the first knuckle? It's inhumane and an awful thing to do, and I'm glad it's increasingly no longer a service even on offer.

As for training a cat not to scratch, you kind of can, but it's probably not going to go great. Cats have an ingrained urge to scratch, and that's part of their biology.

See, cat claws grow sort of like an onion, or the rings on a tree. New inner layers grow, and outer layers get brittle and need to be shed. Scratching helps pull those outer layers off, keeping the claws nice and sharp.

You've also probably noticed that cat claws are curved. If they keep growing and don't shed, they keep growing in that curve, which means they can eventually curl all the way back into the foot.

Make a fist with the nails of your fingers pressed into your palm, and squeeze. Now imagine that, all the time, getting worse and worse, with nothing you can do about it.

Overgrown claws like this cause pain, they pierce the skin and can cause infection, and they make it painful for your fur baby to even move. Obviously, not great!

You can train a cat not to scratch some things, which is what my Paws Off the Furniture post is about. Redirect them to proper scratching surfaces and away from things you want left intact. But no, you can't stop them from scratching entirely, not if you want a healthy and happy cat.

The goal isn't to prevent your cat from scratching, it's to make sure they're scratching the right things. That's why cat perches, scratchers, and other pet furniture are made with scratching in mind.

The Three Kinds of Material Explained

When you see a scratching post or cat tower meant to be scratched at, it's going to be covered in or made of one of three materials. Those three are cardboard, carpet, and sisal.

Cardboard is cardboard, we all know it. Cat scratching pads made of cardboard sandwich a bunch of layers together and present them edge-on, so the corrugated insides make a perfect, resistant but not too stiff material for claws to work their way through. You can easily make your own out of layers of Amazon boxes or whatever, or buy pre-made cardboard disposable scratchers.

Carpet is usually a low-pile, dense kind of carpet, the sort you'll find in home offices, public places, and high-traffic areas. It's dense, but the loops and hooks of fabric catch claws and allow your cat to tug and pull at them.

Sisal looks like rope, because it is. It's an organic material, the sisal plant, which is a kind of agave with long, stiff leaves. Those leaves can be shredded into tough fibers that are then turned into cord or rope, and woven into all kinds of other items, including clothing, shoes, bags, and much more. It's tough, resilient, shreds nicely, and can easily be replaced without having to replace the whole object you're fixing.

I've seen other materials too. When I was a kid, my neighbor just screwed 2x4s together and let their cat rip into the raw pine. It worked fine, but they did shred it, and more than once we had to pick slivers out of our feet… or their cat's paws. It also meant that, over the course of a decade, their cat tree became very precarious as the foundation was torn away. For obvious reasons, I don't recommend that.

When is Carpet the Best Material for a Cat Scratcher?

I'm going to be honest here; despite the story my customer sent me up top, I don't think carpet is a very good material for a cat to scratch. In fact, their story is a good example of one of the reasons why!

Carpet has some serious downsides. One of the big ones is just that carpet is common in homes, and the places carpet is installed in homes are not places you want your cat scratching. If you're allowing your cat to scratch at carpet, they're going to think they can scratch at any carpet and tear up your floors.

Carpet is usually made of looped fibers, which can catch your cat's claws and be a lot harder for them to deal with than other scratcher materials. A claw caught in a loop of carpet can be surprisingly hard for your fur baby to remove.

In fact, a friend of mine once told me that their carpet-coated cat tree caused a catastrophe when their cat jumped down, caught a claw in a loop on the way down, and pulled a nail out. Blood everywhere is pretty scary after your cat makes a loud yowling noise and rockets off! It turned out to "just" be a broken nail, but even that is awful.

If you're going to use carpet, there are some special cat-safe carpets you can get that are more like felt. They don't have the same kinds of loops and don't run the risk of hurting your cat if they end up using them incorrectly.

When is Cardboard the Best Material for a Cat Scratcher?

Cardboard is cheap, readily available, lightweight, easy to put anywhere you want, and even easy to make on your own. Cats love it. It has enough resistance to help them shed their claws without hurting them, and enough give that they feel like they're really going to town when they tear into it.

Personally, I love cardboard scratch pads. They're invaluable for training; put them near anything your cat is likely to scratch, and use them to redirect your cat if they scratch something they shouldn't, like the couch or a doorframe. You can move them around as needed, too.

There are some downsides, though.

For one thing, they wear out quickly. It's a good thing that cardboard is cheap, because you'll be going through these regularly. I've seen multi-cat households go through them on a weekly basis!

They also don't make a good coating for the pole of a cat tree. They're best as stand-alone scratch pads or cardboard toys you make for them. Or just boxes they'll chill out in and chew on when they're bored!

Speaking of, cardboard also shreds, and the little bits of paper can get everywhere. Be prepared to clean up around the scratchers pretty regularly. And don't be too surprised if your cat swallows some of that paper, either.

Fortunately, if your cat is just eating little bits here and there, it's not really a problem. It's only a risk if they're eating a lot of cardboard, or if they're eating big pieces, and end up with a blockage. If that happens, it's time for the vet!

When is Sisal the Best Material for a Cat Scratcher?

Sisal is generally considered the gold standard for cat scratchers. It's a natural fiber! It's tough, but it frays and breaks under the abuse a cat gives it. It holds up for longer than other materials, but it's inherently disposable and replaceable.

Remember, cats in the outdoors are scratching things like trees, and sisal is a pretty good mimic of tree bark without all the risk of sticky sap, bugs, or sharp bits. Plus, since sisal retains the marks they leave in it, it satisfies their marking behavior needs.

A lot of sisal wraps aren't really meant to be replaced, but they can be. It depends on what kind of sisal product you buy. For a simple wrapped pole, you can re-wrap it yourself pretty easily. For larger weaves, you might need a full replacement.

I like sisal most for coating scratching posts and cat towers. Anything you want your cat to scratch, that is vertical and can't just be covered in cardboard, can be wrapped with sisal.

Despite all of that, sisal has a couple of downsides too. It does look pretty messy and frayed after a while, long before it's worn enough to need replacing. Cats can sometimes eat the fibers, and those can cause a blockage in rare cases. Also, some kinds of sisal have problems similar to carpet, though you can avoid those by checking the kind of sisal weave you're buying first.

The Best Material for a Cat Scratcher

Overall, sisal is the most vet-recommended option, but I think cardboard has a good role to play, too. You can even try something like jute instead, and felt pads can be an interesting change of pace.

For me, though, sisal for the tougher vertical surfaces, and cardboard for the horizontal scratchers and for training.

Cat Scratching Questions and Answers

As usual, I have a few extra questions I wanted to address here at the end of the post.

My cat doesn't like sisal and won't scratch it. What can I do?

Try something else! Some cats don't like sisal because it's fairly tough, and they want to rip something apart. There are rope-like materials like jute that aren't quite as tough.

I know I nay-said wood earlier, but some softer woods (handled properly) can also be a good option. A lot comes down to being able to monitor your cat's behavior and make sure they aren't doing anything that could hurt them.

Can I make a cardboard scratch pad myself?

Absolutely! All you need are a bunch of layers of cardboard, about an inch wide and however long you want them, sandwiched together and secured.

I highly recommend getting the cleanest cardboard you can, though. Reusing shipping boxes runs the risk of transferring any odd chemicals or other nonsense that soaked into the boxes in transit, and that can be harmful.

My cat isn't scratching. What's going on?

I'd check a few things. First, watch them for a few days and see if they're scratching something you don't realize they're scratching. I've heard all kinds of stories, from finding a shredded bedpost in a guest room to a torn-up corner of a closet, and more.

If that's not it, check their paws. It's possible that they hurt themselves, and it actually feels painful to scratch, so they're not scratching while they heal.

I've also known some older cats to scratch less often. It's not necessarily anything bad, as long as you keep an eye on their claws and make sure they don't get overgrown and painful.

Do you have a question to ask or a story to tell? Let me know!